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Turbulent seas ahead, as a passenger decided to jump overboard from his cruise, with suspicions it was to avoid his $16,000 gambling debts. Jey Xander Omar Gonzalez-Diaz has now been picked up by federal prosecutors after he reportedly tried to escape his debts in Puerto Rico’s San Juan dock.
This all happened on the Royal Caribbean’s Rhapsody of the Seas, where Gonzalez-Diaz was saved from the waters by jet-skis. When he was scooped out of the ocean, he was found to have nearly $15,000 in cash on his person.
While it’s suspected he threw himself overboard to avoid the gambling debts accrued on the ship, he was charged with trying to transport over $10,000 outside the US. Police found that he was carrying $14,600 in cash at the time.
When interviewed by investigators, Gonzalez-Diaz claims that “he did not want to report the currency in his possession because he thought he was going to be taxed duties for bringing in the currency.”
According to reports, Gonzalez-Diaz owed the Royal Caribbean $16,710.24, which the criminal allegations filed against him state are “almost exclusively associated with Casino and Gaming expenses.”
The case isn’t over, however. NBC News reports that a Royal Caribbean spokesperson has declined the comment, as it’s an active investigation:
“… as this is an ongoing investigation, we are working with authorities and don’t have any more information to share.”
Fake names, multiple IDs found on cruise ship jumper
It’s also reported that Gonzalez-Diaz booked the cruise under the name “Jeremy Diaz”. When asked by Homeland Security agents for his full name, he refused to cooperate and said that, “If you guys were good at your job, you would know that.”

Cruise ship passenger in Puerto Rico jumps overboard allegedly to avoid $16,000 gambling debt. https://t.co/I9r4a6Y2hl
— CBS News (@CBSNews) September 10, 2025

These reports, stemming from CBS, which obtained the documents, claim that he had a backpack, a handbag, two mobile devices, and five pieces of identification.
Gonzalez-Diaz has since been released on bail, according to Wapa.tv. If found guilty, he may face a $250,000 fine, a five-year prison sentence, or both.
Featured image: Michel Curi / CC BY 2.0
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Light & Wonder, Inc. has a new plan to repay its outstanding debt by offering $1 billion in “aggregate principal amount of senior unsecured notes.” These will be due in 2033, as a private offering. This comes as the firm became the first PAGCOR-licensed supplier for e-gaming in the Philippines this week.
An unsecured note can be a risky type of investment, as it is designed to flush a company with cash while it sorts out its finances. These will mature in 2033, with Light & Wonder paying interest along the way and repaying the principal at maturity. However, the risk here is that there’s no collateral or security around the note, so it highly relies on Light & Wonder being able to have the cash.
In the press release, Light & Wonder states that part of its three-pronged proposal for the cash is to “redeem all $700.0 million of LNWI’s outstanding aggregate principal amount of its 7.000% senior unsecured notes due 2028… including related fees and expenses.”
Light & Wonder seeks $1 billion to pay off debt
The other two prongs are to repay all outstanding borrowings “under its revolving credit facility.” Light & Wonder will also use the remaining proceeds for “corporate purposes,” which may include repurchases of the company’s equity.
As Light & Wonder joins the gaming market in the Philippines, its Vice President of Commercial Magdalena Podhorska-Okolow said the company wouldn’t be “reinventing the wheel.”
“We’ve had a lot of relationships, and we know what’s working in the market today,” she said.
“We know which game families are working. We know which games the Filipino players have learned to love over the years, and these are the games and the IP that we’ll be bringing digital versions of.”
The company has gone through some internal restructuring in the last few months. In June, it made significant changes to its legal team, while in April, it acquired a 20% stake in Bang Bang Games, a UK slot company. Also in April, the company was facing legal scrutiny over its games, with some games being found to potentially be in violation of copyright infringement. The company also found itself in infringement territory with its roulette games.
Featured image: Light & Wonder
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The Third Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments this week in Kalshi v New Jersey, a closely watched case testing where state authority over gambling stops and where the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s authority over swaps begins. From the start, it sounded like the panel might be leaning toward Kalshi, with at least two judges sounding doubtful about New Jersey’s arguments.
The prediction market had already won a battle earlier this year against the state’s regulators, and Kalshi launched new sports wagers on its platform last month.
New Jersey built its case around the claim that sports betting contracts are not “swaps” under federal law, and that idea shaped the discussion. But Judge Michael Chagares, who was presiding, pointed out that the statutory definition of swaps is “pretty broad,” which raised doubts right away.
Judge David J. Porter pushed for concrete examples of sports bets that would not count as swaps, and Kalshi’s lawyer pointed to player props, the same kind of contracts Kalshi itself offers. That back and forth showed how difficult it is to draw a clear line. If not all sports bets are swaps, then how should courts decide which ones are?
Some people following the case said New Jersey’s decision to start with the definition of a swap may have actually worked in Kalshi’s favor.

the state's attorney is breaking down his argument into three

1. sports contracts aren't swaps
2. "Wyeth" (which is the seminal preemption case) shows that sports betting is within state powers
3. that kalshi doesn't get to preemption in the standard analysis

— Adhi Rajaprabhakaran (@eightyhi) September 10, 2025

New Jersey pushes for state regulation of sports betting in Kalshi case
New Jersey leaned hard on the presumption against preemption, casting sports betting as something for state legislatures to handle. But the judges kept steering the conversation back to the statutory definition of swaps, which signaled some doubt about the state’s approach. At one point, a judge even said Kalshi’s argument was better than “negligible,” a remark that sounded like a good sign for the startup.
Kalshi opened with what it saw as its strongest point, that the Commodity Exchange Act gives the CFTC “exclusive jurisdiction” over activity on designated contract markets. The company argued that if New Jersey wins, states could essentially regulate the global futures market by labeling almost any bet on a future event as “gambling.”
Kalshi also pushed both “field” and “conflict” preemption arguments. On the conflict side, its lawyer pointed to New Jersey’s rule that sports betting operators can only take wagers from people inside the state. That is impossible for a federally regulated designated contract market, which serves customers nationwide. If every state had a rule like that, Kalshi argued, the federal framework would collapse.
The prediction market’s pitch was that its federally regulated markets can exist alongside state-regulated sportsbooks, but that state law cannot be used to block trading on a CFTC-regulated exchange.
The judges kept testing both sides. One tossed out a hypothetical about a ping pong match between judges as an example of a market too trivial to fall under CFTC oversight, probing the limits of federal power. Another said they understood New Jersey’s feeling of being “cut out” of sports betting regulation, but pointed out that Congress had clearly given the CFTC sweeping authority over swaps.
Near the end, New Jersey tried a kind of gotcha by pointing to Kalshi’s earlier litigation over election contracts, where the company suggested sports betting was not part of its business. But that move may have backfired, since admitting the CFTC could regulate sports contracts only strengthens Kalshi’s preemption claim.
Observers say Kalshi had a strong start
People watching the case noticed a clear difference in how the two sides argued. Kalshi’s lawyer was calm and clear, dealing with each issue directly. New Jersey’s presentation felt scattered and defensive. At one point, when the state claimed there was no “comprehensive scheme” for regulating these markets, a judge shot back by asking what the 38 “core principles” of the CFTC were for, if not comprehensive oversight.

I’m expecting an affirmance in favor of Kalshi, but some of the late questioning suggested that the court may not grant an outright victory to Kalshi. Player props may be the bridge too far.

— Daniel Wallach (@WALLACHLEGAL) September 10, 2025

The panel wrapped things up by calling the case “interesting, and very well litigated.” With that, court was adjourned. Nothing is guaranteed, but the tone in the courtroom made it seem like Kalshi might have the edge.
Featured image: Kalshi / Canva
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The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has released a statement after it uncovered three student-athletes were involved in gambling on their own games. Named and shamed by the organization, Mykell Robinson, Steven Vasquez, and Jalen Weaver have since been released from their teams, as well as booted from their schools.
Two of the trio, Vasquez and Robinson, organized the bet over text, where Robinson would allegedly underperform in a game to influence the outcome. The NCAA reports that Vasquez and Robinson, along with another individual, “bet a combined $2,200,” which paid out $15,950.

Fairly significant findings from the NCAA today:
It has permanently banned three players from Fresno State and San Jose State related to sports betting-related game manipulation.
Full release here:https://t.co/a5qC5T8wgY pic.twitter.com/6pFBeCr6Yk
— Ben Portnoy (@bportnoy15) September 10, 2025

Robinson won an additional $618 from one game. However, the NCAA doesn’t believe that he won his bets every time. It’s reported that Robinson made $454 dollars of bets on games throughout the season. These were done via fantasy sports over-line and under-line prop bets, as well as parlays.
Fresno State teammate Jalen Weaver was bet on multiple times by Robinson after getting involved in the scheme. Weaver became fully involved when he placed a $50 prop bet on a game he and Robinson were involved in. This netted him $260.
What potentially tipped the scales in favor of eliminating the trio from their Division 1 teams was that Vasquez and Robinson failed to work with the investigation team. Weaver simply agreed to the violation.
Player-on-player prop bet gambling has become a problem
Inside gambling for sports has become a problem in the US in recent years. As apps providing prop bets, like DraftKings and FanDuel, become more and more prevalent, it’s possible we’ll see an uptick in fallout from actions like the above.
It’s become a problem to the point that the NBA is now considering limiting prop bets in games. The aim is to better protect its players, as well as reduce the risk of games being thrown over the gambling habit.
Featured image: NCAA, Wikicommons
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